“We are very excited to have successfully accelerated the spudding of the BAN-2 appraisal well. This is one of the most important wells we will drill in 2014 as it allows us to assess the multi-hundred million barrel potential up-dip of the Banan-1 exploration well that was successfully tested earlier this year.

“The drilling of BAN-2 and the acquisition of 3D seismic in the next few months should provide us with a better understanding of the full potential of the Banan discovery.”

The Sakson Hilong 10 rig spudded the BAN-2 appraisal well approximately 5 kilometres to the North-West of the Banan-1 exploration well (“BAN-1”). As announced on March 12, 2014 oil was successfully flowed in two cased-hole drill stem tests on the BAN-1 exploration well, one in each of the Cretaceous (Shiranish and top Kometan formations) and the Lower Jurassic (Butmah formation). Additionally, the drilling and test results showed the development of additional reservoirs that will be further appraised and tested as part of the appraisal program for Banan.

Prior to the start of the BAN-1 testing program, Netherland, Sewell & Associates, Inc. (“NSAI”) estimated as of December 31, 2013 that the Banan discovery contains low, best and high estimates unrisked gross (100%) contingent oil resources of 5, 40 and 440 MMbbl, respectively, all in the Cretaceous formations.

HKN Energy Ltd. (HKN) has announced that it has notified the Kurdistan Regional Government of Iraq (KRG) that the Swara Tika discovery is a “Commercial Discovery” pursuant to the terms of the Sarsang Production Sharing Contract.

HKN, as operator of the Sarsang Block, has drilled two wells on the Swara Tika structure. The Swara Tika-1 exploration well was spudded in August 2010 and drilled to a total depth of approximately 3,800 meters. Daily flow rates were established from two Triassic tests estimated at more than 7,000 barrels per day (bpd) of 35°-39° API oil with associated gas.

The Swara Tika-2 well was spudded in December 2011 and drilled to a total depth of approximately 3,700 meters. The Swara Tika-2 well established natural flow from five Triassic zones totaling more than 18,000 bpd of 35°-39° API oil and 14 million standard cubic feet (mmscf) of associated gas on a 2” choke with only a portion of each interval perforated.

In addition, during the drilling of Swara Tika-2, HKN successfully recovered significant quantities of heavier Jurassic oil to the surface using underbalanced drilling techniques. The Swara Tika-2 well is located 4 kilometers away from the Swara Tika-1 discovery well and the hydrocarbon bearing zones of interest are 150 meters downdip from the Swara Tika-1 well. Both wells have approximately 1,800 meter gross stratigraphic sections with indications of hydrocarbons.

“We are pleased to declare a commercial discovery relating to the Swara Tika structure, which is an important milestone as we move toward the full development of this discovery,” said Russell Freeman, Chief Executive Officer, HKN Energy. “We continue to appraise the other structures on the Sarsang Block as permitted by the KRG, and we look forward to working with our co-venturers and the KRG to further develop this world class block.”

Oryx Petroleum today announced a successful oil discovery at Zey Gawra in the Hawler license area.

The ZEG-1 well was flow tested at an average rate of 4,800 barrels per day of light crude oil from an 81 metre column. A Notice of Discovery has been filed by the Corporation with the Kurdistan Region Government. Oryx Petroleum is the operator and has a 65% participating and working interest in the Hawler license area.

“Hawler is proving to be a prolific license area. We are very pleased to have made our third consecutive oil discovery there this year, achieving excellent flow rates of high quality crude from the Cretaceous.

“More work needs to be done to confirm the size of the discovery but we believe it will be substantially larger than our pre-drill estimates. Importantly, the reservoir characteristics in the Cretaceous, notably the matrix porosity, confirm our experience with the other wells we have drilled in the Hawler license area.

“We are already planning our first Zey Gawra appraisal well and we are confident that the discovery will be established as commercial.“

Oryx Petroleum Corporation has announced the discovery and testing of crude oil at Ain Al Safra in Iraqi Kurdistan.

The Ain Al Safra discovery will be appraised in 2014 as part of the multi-well appraisal and development drilling program in the Hawler license area, where Oryx Petroleum is the operator and has a 65% participating and working interest.

“We are very pleased to make a second oil discovery on the Hawler license area. Based on the results of the recently completed test program at Ain Al Safra, we are proceeding with further analysis and appraisal to determine the size and quality of the discovery as well as its potential commerciality. We look forward to working with our partners to appraise this new discovery.“

Gulf Keystone notes today’s update by MOL Hungarian Oil and Gas Plc., the operator of the Akri-Bijeel Block in the Kurdistan Region of Iraq (in which Gulf Keystone has a 20 per cent working interest), on its extensive exploration and appraisal programme.

Bakrman-1 Exploration Well Discovery

Bakrman-1, the first exploration well to target the Bakrman structure on the Akri-Bijeel Block, has made a new Triassic discovery. This is the second discovery on the block following the Bijell discovery made in 2010.

Bakrman-1 spudded in May 2012, 32 km to the north-west of the Bijell-1 discovery well. The well was drilled to a total depth of 4,100 metres in the Kurra Chine B formation in the Triassic, following which a well testing programme commenced, targeting reservoir zones in the Jurassic and Triassic. Two open hole tests and three cased hole tests have been performed to date. According to the operator, the second open hole well test performed at 3,930-4,100 metres MD (measured depth) in the Kurra Chine B formation in the Triassic resulted in calculated daily flow rates of approximately 2,616 barrels of light (32 to 35 degrees API gravity) oil per day and a gas rate of approximately 5.86 million standard cubic feet per day. The well testing programme is ongoing and is expected to be completed in April 2013.

Gulak-1 Exploration Well

Gulak-1, the fourth exploration well to be drilled on the Akri-Bijeel block and the first exploration well to target the Gulak anticline, spudded in July 2012 and has been drilled 21 km to the east from the Bijell-1 discovery well and 5 km to the south from the Bekhme-1 exploration well to a total depth of 3,641 metres in the Kurra Chine B formation in the Triassic. The well test programme, consisting of five tests, has now been completed. In the course of the DST#4 performed at 2,385-2,420 metres MD in the Sargelu and Naokelekan formations in the Jurassic, minor inflows of between 22-30 degrees API oil were encountered. Following the completion of the DST#5, it is proposed that the well will be suspended.

The Missan Oil Company (MOC) has announced the completion of the exploratory oil well in the Deema-1 [Dima-1] formation.

Oil Minister Abdul Kareem Luaibi [Elaibi] said that the Deema oil field, which is located in Maysan governorate, was completed 100 percent successfully, and in a record time, without any problems by the MOC and the Iraqi Drilling Company (IDC), using the rig “Oil Well/21″.

The Minister said a giant reserve of light oil (API=31-33) was found in depth of 150 meters.

The MOC paid IDC $13,940,700 for drilling, hardware and operations, in addition to IQD 4,233,618,750 for the oil rig operation. And the project took 210 days to completion, which is considered a record time.

Iraq has announced that it has discovered deposits of crude oil equivalent to one billion barrels of oil, following the first exploration work by state-owned firms in almost 30 years.

The new oil find in Maysan [Missan] province, near the border with Iran, and could potentially make a significant addition to Baghdad’s reserves, which are currently listed as 143.1 billion barrels of oil and 3.2 trillion cubic metres (111.9 trillion cubic feet) of gas.

The Maysan Oil Company [Missan Oil Company] made the discovery south of provincial capital, Amara.